Novak Djokovic fails to medal in singles at Olympics as Pablo Carreno Busta wins bronze

TOKYO — World No. 1 Novak Djokovic came to the Olympics trying to add a gold medal to the three Grand Slam titles he’s already won this year. Instead, he’ll go home without any medal in men’s singles.

A day after his shocking collapse against Alexander Zverev in the semifinals, a frustrated Djokovic dropped a second consecutive three-setter, this time losing to Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta in the bronze medal match 6-4, 6-7, 6-3.

For Carreno Busta, ranked No. 11 in the world, winning a bronze medal here ranks as arguably the biggest achievement of his career alongside his two semifinal appearances at the U.S. Open in 2017 and 2020.

Though Djokovic started strong at the Tokyo Games and was nearly untouchable for his first 4½ matches, it looked more and more like his tank was empty toward the latter stages of the tournament. Djokovic had to fight hard just to give himself a chance against Carreno Busta, saving a match point in the second set tiebreaker before leveling it moments later.

But Djokovic couldn’t convert break points in the first game of the third set and got broken immediately thereafter. That sequence led to a series of outbursts, including Djokovic tossing a racquet into the stands, screaming in Serbian and then smashing another racquet on the side of the net-post after falling behind 0-3.

Djokovic was supposed to play another bronze medal match later Saturday in mixed doubles with Nina Stojanovic but the Serbian duo withdrew, giving the medal to the Australian team of John Peers and Ash Barty.

Immediately after winning Wimbledon earlier this month, Djokovic – who won a bronze medal in 2008 – said he was unsure whether he would come to Tokyo. But the allure of trying to win the so-called Golden Slam – all four majors and the Olympic gold in a calendar year – and his determination to represent Serbia ultimately tipped the scales in favor of playing.

Instead, the 34-year-old Djokovic will leave without the only significant prize in tennis he’s failed to capture. He will also be hounded by some questions about whether the long season has taken its toll as he heads to New York in less than a month as he tries to win the calendar year Grand Slam at the U.S. Open.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Novak Djokovic fails to medal in singles at Tokyo Olympics